thinking of becoming a professional gambler

R0UF · 15-09-2011 2:37pm

200,000 Betfair users made a profit last year.

Dailynaps · 15-09-2011 2:41pm

holdemfoldem wrote: »

I dont quite get where your pulling .5% from? you mean to say when all bookmakers and exchanges are consider you feel the number of successful people decreases rather than increases?

why have you removed "traders, all in-running pros at the track and basically anyone who backs big-piced horses or golfers" these are the people who are most successful and they are still gambling.

Exactly, these are the people who are most successful and they all bet with Betfair. But still there's only 1.5% over 15k on Betfair including all those. If you include everybody who doesn't have a Betfair account, the % gets smaller and smaller. How many pros do you think don't have a Betfair account?

Betfair only have ~3 million customers, so 45,000 people make over 15k. I'd say most of those 45,000 people make their money trading or in-running or on longshot horses.

Many millions of people don't have a Betfair account, these people don't make money trading, etc. They can't even make money online consistently without their account being closed. Imo much less than .5% of these make a profit, but when including the Betfair customers it will bring the % up slightly.

holdemfoldem · 15-09-2011 3:18pm

I tend to disagree, I kind of feel you have missed my point. Maybe I'm also missing yours but I'm pretty sure I already address the points made above in my previous posts?

As someone said above 200K ( not stating this as fact in any way ) people made a profit on BF, granted you want to rule out really small winners but most of the rest will be profitable elsewhere. Yes trading Is mostly done on the same exchange but can and is done on a mixture of bookies and exchanges, the same goes for dutching.

A lot of straight bet pros also make the largest chunk of their ROI from BOG bookies, BF cannot offer the same thing therefore this section of pro's use BF less than standard bookmakers. Also being limited won't effect pro's, think about it if you make a 5-10% ( or even lower ) ROI consistently are you going to give up just because you got limited?

Anyway, my opinion is that while it is very tough to make money "gambling" a lot of people do.. more than the lay man might think is all.

Dailynaps · 15-09-2011 4:58pm

R0UF wrote: »

200,000 Betfair users made a profit last year.

Does anybody actually have a link to a figure? Well kept secret, no surprise :rolleyes:

Holdemfoldem, i take your point. And true being limited is more of a hindrance than a reason to give up.

The way I see it, if we take that 200k people make profit on Betfair (which looks too high imo), we can take that just over 200k people make a profit in general. I think the vast vast majority of people making a profit from BOG firms or Betdaq/WBX will also make a profit on Betfair so they're already included in that 200k. I'd be surprised if there was more than the few thousand who are making a profit from bookmakers and not from Betfair.

R0UF · 16-09-2011 10:10am

It is a lot easier to make a profit with bookmakers then Betfair but it is easeir to get on on Betfair than with bookmakers.

AstonMartin · 16-09-2011 11:07am

Blind leading the blind.

sources?

johnny_cash · 16-09-2011 11:17am

R0UF wrote: »

It is a lot easier to make a profit with bookmakers then Betfair but it is easeir to get on on Betfair than with bookmakers.

LOL care to explain that one?

CIARAN_BOYLE · 16-09-2011 12:08pm

most betfair users aren't pro gamblers. If you don't bet a lot of money you won't make a lot of money. A lot of casual punters bet on betfair.

beeintheknow · 16-09-2011 1:00pm

CIARAN_BOYLE wrote: »

most betfair users aren't pro gamblers. If you don't bet a lot of money you won't make a lot of money. A lot of casual punters bet on betfair.

I think Ciaran has hit the nail on the head here.

AstonMartin · 16-09-2011 4:22pm

This has to be the worst advice thread i have ever come across. Basically everything said is wrong. Its no wonder there is a bookies on every street.

beeintheknow · 16-09-2011 4:23pm

AstonMartin wrote: »

This has to be the worst advice thread i have ever come across. Basically everything said is wrong. Its no wonder there is a bookies on every street.

Well where is your advice sensei?

AstonMartin · 16-09-2011 6:23pm

Spend a lot of time learning how to price up a market and pair it with a good bankroll management strategy. Never tilt. Dont bet on what you dont know.

or open a bookies and get the odds feed from one of the major bookmakers for a fee.

its not a mystery how to make money it just takes a lot of work.

17-09-2011 1:35am

CIARAN_BOYLE wrote: »

most betfair users aren't pro gamblers. If you don't bet a lot of money you won't make a lot of money. A lot of casual punters bet on betfair.

Most punters aren't pro gamblers, why should Betfair be any different. As said though the vast vast majority of pro punters have a Betfair account. The betting offices are still full of folks who don't know what Betfair is.

Most punters are casual punters.

How any pro punters are posting in this thread?

CIARAN_BOYLE · 17-09-2011 12:08pm

RoverJames wrote: »

Most punters aren't pro gamblers, why should Betfair be any different. As said though the vast vast majority of pro punters have a Betfair account. The betting offices are still full of folks who don't know what Betfair is.

People are saying how hard is to make money on betfair only 1.5% of people make a profit of over 15K a year on betfair. My point was that probably only pro punters will make 15K a year because they bet the stakes necessary. Most punters on betfair are casual punters.

No wonder the % is so low

AstonMartin · 18-09-2011 1:19am

What is a "pro" punter and where did this figure of 15k come from?

beeintheknow · 19-09-2011 11:16am

AstonMartin wrote: »

What is a "pro" punter and where did this figure of 15k come from?

lol if you have to ask it's obvious you aint no pro

AstonMartin · 20-09-2011 12:14am

People on the dole generally make 15k a year but they hardly live the good life.

Is that the benchmark?

d-gal · 20-02-2012 10:24am

Just resurrecting this thread after reading it again.
Simple enough question for people. Your given a 50k bankroll, you have 5k also for living expenses for 2/3 months saved. Gambling is your only income. What would you bet it on?
Personally I think it would be massive pressure and if I was asked this 6months ago I would have backed 4horses I was given in advance as main bets and less than 10 other horses throughout.
How much I would have put on each would be another thing

L'prof · 20-02-2012 4:45pm

d-gal wrote: »

Just resurrecting this thread after reading it again.
Simple enough question for people. Your given a 50k bankroll, you have 5k also for living expenses for 2/3 months saved. Gambling is your only income. What would you bet it on?
Personally I think it would be massive pressure and if I was asked this 6months ago I would have backed 4horses I was given in advance as main bets and less than 10 other horses throughout.
How much I would have put on each would be another thing

Personally, I couldn't rely on gambling as my only source of income. I'd find it far too stressful!

ft9 · 20-02-2012 4:50pm

I would put it all on Hurricane Fly to win the CH.

Amigomenor · 20-02-2012 8:05pm

ft9 wrote: »

I would put it all on Hurricane Fly to win the CH.

And then you would be broke!

ft9 · 20-02-2012 8:09pm

Amigomenor wrote: »

And then you would be broke!

You consider having €91666.67 being broke?

timesnap · 20-02-2012 8:16pm

If the OP was thinking of becoming a professional gambler S/he should stick to the day job!

a professional never shows their hand!;)

d-gal · 20-02-2012 9:15pm

ft9 wrote: »

I would put it all on Hurricane Fly to win the CH.

Nothing is a certainty so you should never put 100% of your bankroll on 1 thing.

timesnap wrote: »

If the OP was thinking of becoming a professional gambler S/he should stick to the day job!

a professional never shows their hand!;)

Unless they have made it already and like to boast

L'prof wrote: »

Personally, I couldn't rely on gambling as my only source of income. I'd find it far too stressful!

Same for a lot of people, I would love to try it for 6 months, April to September preferably, someone give me 50k and il give it a try I swear!

timesnap · 20-02-2012 9:59pm

d-gal wrote: »

Nothing is a certainty so you should never put 100% of your bankroll on 1 thing.

Other than your own death will happen some day.
do not do that as horrible relatives will collect your winnings.:eek:

Unless they have made it already and like to boast

Did you not read the co-founder of the sites thread?
'you have questions .i will answer 'thread a while back?
He be Devore,says he earns between 4000 to 5000 per month from boards but that would not keep him,i think it was code by him that it would not buy him into a poker table in his circle of friends.:pac:

Same for a lot of people, I would love to try it for 6 months, April to September preferably, someone give me 50k and il give it a try I swear!

Seasonally affected gambling?:D

heavyballs · 21-02-2012 12:16am

fwiw my best mate turned pro about 6 years ago,he's still going strong but instead of relying on bets alone he has 10-15 big gamblers who have accounts with him as they can't get big bets on with the firms

Amigomenor · 21-02-2012 9:35am

ft9 wrote: »

You consider having €91666.67 being broke?

Would prefer not to answer that and its a bit crass if you ask me.

Doubtless Hurricane Fly is fav for a reason however having your whole bank on anything is madness. All you need is 1 loser and you are wiped out. Look at the large percentage of supposed dead certs who are turned over.

Amigomenor · 21-02-2012 9:37am

heavyballs wrote: »

fwiw my best mate turned pro about 6 years ago,he's still going strong but instead of relying on bets alone he has 10-15 big gamblers who have accounts with him as they can't get big bets on with the firms

This is what most do, however you are relying on them to be losing clients and you also have to give them a cut so there are expenses.
I believe its getting harder to make money in this area and I for one would not like to rely on it as the main source of income.

DeVore · 21-02-2012 12:09pm

timesnap wrote: »

Other than your own death will happen some day.
do not do that as horrible relatives will collect your winnings.:eek:

Did you not read the co-founder of the sites thread?
'you have questions .i will answer 'thread a while back?
He be Devore,says he earns between 4000 to 5000 per month from boards but that would not keep him,i think it was code by him that it would not buy him into a poker table in his circle of friends.:pac:

Seasonally affected gambling?:D

hurk?!? I said nothing of the sort. I said I invoice boards for 2,250 +Vat a month. I get paid nothing else by them by any other means (in kind or otherwise!).

Dunno where you got 4-5k from... God that would be nice lol!

DeVore · 21-02-2012 12:21pm

DeVore wrote: »

hurk?!? I said nothing of the sort. I said I invoice boards for 2,250 +Vat a month. I get paid nothing else by them by any other means (in kind or otherwise!).

Dunno where you got 4-5k from... God that would be nice lol!

You might have meant "from POKER"... thats true, on a good month maybe. On a bad month you are eating beans for the whole time. Its not a lifestyle I suggest unless you are really talented. I know a few guys making serious scratch but its getting harder and harder as the fish get more educated and the skill-tide rises.

Some of my mates would play nose-bleed stakes when a good raise from them is half my bankroll but its all the same game, the only difference is the colour of the chips.

Making a living from poker is all about grinding out hours at a table, usually your desk at home playing online, with an expected hourly rate and a lot of coffee to catch the drunk americans when their pubs close.

thinking of becoming a professional gambler

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